Hector Camacho

Hector "Macho" Camacho, the boxer, who has died aged 50, was a former world
champion at three different weights; a flamboyant southpaw, his outrageous
behaviour both in the ring and out kept him in the headlines for a quarter
of a century.

Boxing is not renowned for shrinking violets, but the Puerto Rican Camacho displayed a monstrous ego, prompting one seasoned fight observer to remark: “Hector Camacho’s great dream is to some day die in his own arms.” When asked which champion of the past he most closely resembled, Camacho replied: “I’m all of them rolled into one.” On another occasion he declared: “I am the 'Macho Man’. I am the one that turns the public on. They hear about me, but they want to see more.” He was the first boxer to appear in the ring clad in loincloths.

His well-publicised drug and alcohol problems, spectacular ring-walks and occasionally chaotic private life should not, however, disguise the fact that he was an enormously gifted athlete whose longevity in the sport indicated that he was more dedicated than his popular image might suggest.

He won his first title — the North American Boxing Federation super-featherweight crown — in 1982, and was still around to capture the lightly-regarded World Boxing Federation crown 26 years later.

Hector Camacho was born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, on May 24 1962. As a troubled teenager, he found solace in boxing, and following a top-class amateur career he rose rapidly through the professional rankings, capturing the vacant World Boxing Council super-featherweight crown with a fifth-round stoppage of Mexico’s Rafael Limon on August 7 1983. Weight problems caused him to relinquish the title after only one defence, and the lightweight crown – which he secured by outpointing the Mexican Jose Luis Ramirez in Las Vegas on August 10 1985 – after only two.

There followed a low-key couple of years, after which Camacho re-emerged in the 140lb light-welter division, outpointing his American rival Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini in Reno, Nevada, on March 6 1989. In the build-up, Mancini had dismissed Camacho as “a street punk” with no class. “A street punk will bother you if he thinks he can get over on you,” replied Camacho. “If you stand up to him, he’ll run – I never run from anything.”

Related Articles

Seemingly now in his prime, Camacho saw off challenges from the Italian-American Vinny Pazienza before surrendering his undefeated record, on a split decision, against the American Greg Haugen at Las Vegas on February 23 1991 — a defeat that he avenged with a similar narrow victory three months later.

Camacho earned widespread admiration for the way he endured a savage beating at the hands of the Mexican fighter Julio Cesar Chavez in the following year. A move up to welterweight saw Camacho lose on points to the unbeaten Felix Trinidad in January 1994, a defeat which suggested that his best days were behind him.

He fought on, however, winning the minor International Boxing Council welterweight title and achieving the distinction of ending the careers of the ageing greats Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran before a loss to Oscar De La Hoya — who was very much at the vanguard of a new generation of fighters — ended his winning streak.

Camacho’s name and reputation saw him fight on into the new century at increasingly obscure locations. He beat the 50-year-old Duran again in July 2001 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, and had his last bout — a defeat against the Mexican Saul Duran — in Florida on May 14 2010. Over the course of his career he had won 79 fights (45 by knockout), with six losses and three draws.

During the final phase of his career, Camacho increasingly fell foul of the law. He was arrested on burglary and drugs charges, serving a short spell in jail. In February 2011 he received gunshot wounds in what he claimed was an attempted carjacking; then he was charged after an alleged assault on his teenage son.

Camacho was being driven in a car in Puerto Rico when he was hit in the neck by a bullet fired from a passing vehicle.

He is survived by four children, including Hector Camacho Jnr, who followed his father into the ring and has had a long career without achieving the success of his father.